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here. Her parents gave it to her…to us. I ended up with it. I thought about selling it, but then…well, no matter, John and I own it now.”
    Cassie glanced over at Luke when he didn’t make a move to get out. He finally shook his head and smiled at her. She should ask what had happened to his wife. It was the obvious response to what Luke said. But she couldn’t. Not now. Not tonight. She had more pressing things on her mind.
    Cassie’s stomach knotted. She and Tim followed Luke inside. The house was as impressive inside as out. She had expected some kind of bachelor pad apartment. Not a half million dollar house set against an ocean beach and decked out in furniture worthy of an upper class interior designer.
    To the left was a large living room with wood flooring and a fireplace. The hallway went to the kitchen which ran the length of the house with a large center island and six person table tucked off the end of the room.
    They were standing in the kitchen when Cassie heard John’s familiar stomp come down the stairs that curved to the foyer. Her heart beat faster, and her breathing hitched. She did not want to be here. She didn’t want to face John in his house. It was different here, more personal than it was at work.
    John came down the hallway, and her awareness of him was a hundred fold more intense than usual. After seeing him at work for the last two weeks, she should be used to the impact he caused. One glance into his chilly gaze, and her hands were clammy, and her heart beat strange. John looked around at Luke, Tim, and finally at her. Then he frowned and looked away.
    The next few minutes were taken up with Luke and John discussing the practicalities of their living arrangements. Luke left through the laundry room and beyond that to his room. Luke’s earlier melancholy had turned to enthusiasm about having her and Tim there. Tim ran excitedly after Luke. Cassie was left alone with John. She couldn’t think of anything to say to him, nor could she meet his gaze which was pinned on her.
    Finally, he said, “This is all Luke’s doing, and the only reason I agreed is because he’s right, Tim deserves a safe place to live.”
    “I know. That’s why I agreed to this too. I don’t want to do this anymore than you do.”
    John raised his brows. Then he spun on his heel, stomped to the foyer, and hefted up both of her suitcases. He motioned with his head for her to go up before him. On the second floor he pointed to a bedroom.
    “There’s not much for furniture.”
    She started when his voice came up behind her. He dumped her suitcases on the bed.
    “It’s wonderful, all of it. The house. The furniture… your help.”
    He scowled at her, then turned and led her across the hall to the other bedroom a bit smaller with a smaller bed. “Tim can stay here.” He showed her the bathroom down the hall. No wonder Luke had thought this would work so well. If circumstances weren’t so bad between John and her, it would make sense. The house was huge.
    John led her up to his room on the third floor. It must have been an attic at one time, but now was a loft type of room. The ceilings were a good twelve feet up but sloped down until the sides dipped off at floor level. Two windows were cut into the gables on each end.
    John’s face was expressionless. Empty. What the hell did he think about all this? She should say something , about this, about his help. About what she’d done to him a decade ago. But what could she say that would change what had happened so long ago between them? What could she say that would change why they were together now in the present?
    Before she could speak, Tim burst through the door and stormed into the room. He stopped dead. He gaped at John’s room.
    Tim swung around excitedly. “Mom there are rooms everywhere! Did you see my room? Our whole apartment could fit on the second floor! And Luke says tomorrow we can go exploring and we can put up a basketball hoop that he has